From the PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE OP-ED:
“Arizona’s new immigration law has polarized Arizona and much of the country. The recently introduced Pennsylvania House Bill 2479, which also would provide for police to check a person’s legal status when stopped for another reason, could produce a similar result here.
“In other countries, citizens are required to have their papers available for police to review. In Italian cities, people are routinely stopped and asked to prove their legal status. I lived there for four years and was never approached. Others were regularly stopped, asked questions and embarrassed in public. Perhaps American officers have better judgment, but I saw that light-skinned speakers of English didn’t attract the attention of the carabinieri like dark-skinned speakers of North African languages did.
“Consider the possible effects of a law requiring police in Pennsylvania to check the legal status of anyone of whom they have “reasonable suspicion.” Consider my son’s baseball team, which is well-coached by a Latino and a Jewish American and whose players belong to families of various ethnic backgrounds. We come together weekly to enjoy the national pastime…”
Click here to read the full article.
Scott Vine is a reference librarian who lives in Lancaster
